ABOUT | Jean Nye is Krista's mother, a world traveler, a retired children and family minister, and a talented writer and musician.

I’ve had the opportunity to travel to India frequently because of my husband Jim’s work. Our first trip, when Krista was 8 and her sister Elise was 11, took place in 1982. We lived for a year in the lovely city of Pune, about 100 miles from Mumbai. Krista traces her love of fabrics back to this time. She delighted in watching the women going about their everyday tasks in their brilliantly colored saris.

India is a feast for all the senses, but particularly for the eyes. Jim and I have collected a variety of things on our trips, from old brass kitchen utensils to folk art animals to fabrics. On a recent trip I picked up several antique fabric fragments in the Hauz Khas Village area of New Delhi. Situated near royal tombs dating back to the 13th century, Hauz Khas is a delightful jumble of small shops and restaurants.

The fragment pictured may have originated in Rajastan, as it is decorated with mirror work and cowrie shells. I mounted it on a natural linen pillow and had fun embroidering a “frame” around it in chain stitch. I love seeing India throughout our apartment in the rugs, furniture, pictures, and accessories. These tangible objects remind me of the intangible, things that I can’t pack up in my suitcase and take home: the scent of jasmine in the air, the moon rising over the Indian Ocean, or the taste of a perfectly ripe Alphonso mango. India has enriched my life in so many ways. I just keep wanting to go back for more.